Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2013 - Page 22

satama Centre project. During Laine’s start
at the company, his phone has been ringing quite a lot:
“There is definitely a lot of interest
from the investors in this project, and during the year, we have been able to offer a
more detailed picture of what’s to come.”
It is no wonder that a cross between
a shopping centre and a city centre – in the
middle of a catchment area of a million people – has attracted a lot of attention, even this
early on in the game. Laine points out that
everything in Kalasatama starts and ends
with the great connections:
“There are half a million people living
with a 15 minutes’ car ride from the Centre,” he offers an example. Even the international airport is located conveniently nearby.
Taking All Comers
Fantastic
Four
REDI is also ready to handle the flow of customers regardless of the mode of transport
they utilise: starting from the bottom, there
are several levels reserved for car parking,
one level for buses, trams and pedestrians
and one for the metro traffic.
“By having these three entrance levels,
we can keep the people flow pretty even,”
adds Laine.
According to Pia Svensk, the remarkable architecture of the centre has a big role
in generating strong footfall and, ultimately, leading to a superior shopping experience. SRV is clearly looking to hit a home
run and to elicit a “Wow!” or two from the
patrons when they visit the shopping oasis
for the first time.
“The best shopping centres in the
world are also travel destinations in their
own right. We want to create something here
that will cause a definite buzz – and make
people come and check it out for themselves
what the fuss is about.”
Bridging Private& Public
W
hile eight towers go vertical in the east, there are four other towers waiting
in the wings in the west. SRV is looking to “make it a dozen” by introducing new kind of residential innovation to the most high-profile corporate
shore in the land: namely, Keilaniemi in Espoo.
Keilaniemi is home to such Finnish corporate giants as Kone, Nokia and Fortum – and their headquarters are not exactly small in size, either. So far, no residential solutions have been developed for the neighbourhood. Sensing a golden opportunity, SRV came up with a concept of Keilaniemi Towers a few years ago.
According to the plans, Keilaniemi Towers is to feature four housing towers
which certainly won’t be eclipsed by their neighbours: with 30–40 storeys each, the
buildings will reach over 120 metres. Due to their round design, the towers will be
able to offer optimal seaside views.
The area under development includes about 70,000 square metres of residential building volume. The key idea is that the residential development plan will go
hand in hand with the construction of the metro line.
Project Development Director Jouko Pöyhönen comments that the project has
its share of challenges – the traffic arrangements in the area, for example, are quite
demanding. Nevertheless, SRV is committed to the project and believes that the four
towers will make a spectacular addition to Keilaniemi.
“Keilaniemi Towers is a mega-class project and we are keen on following
through with it.”
20 Nordicum
In addition to shopping splendour, about
2,000 people will also be able to call Kalasatama Centre their home, as the entity will
feature a strong residential element – complete with breathtaking seaviews, of course.
The centre will also include public premises,
for example a social and healthcare service
facility for the City of Helsinki.
Project Development Director Jouko
Pöyhönen views Kalasatama as the new,
powerful centre for the Helsinki core area
in the east.
“The key issues here deal with linking commercial and public services in the
context of one common concept,” he says,
adding that similarities to Kamppi do exist.
Pöyhönen also knows that the [